


When Dust Settles

by Cadele



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst, Briam, College, Fluff, M/M, Smut, Teenwolf AU, littlebitofpastabuse, zombieapocolypse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-10
Updated: 2018-04-10
Packaged: 2019-04-21 04:44:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14277177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cadele/pseuds/Cadele
Summary: This work is inspired by the amazing creations of Red_to_black; mainly Decibels and After the Fall, if you have not already read them I strongly suggest you do they are brilliant. (I really hope I’m not being to copyrighty) !-Liam Dunbar is at college with his two best friends, life is simple until he bumps into Brett Talbot, a tall, concerningly good looking student a year ahead of him. However before things can kick off, a deadly virus hits the city, or the entire east coast, or the nation, Liam wouldn’t know - society broke down on the first day.





	1. The Bump

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [After The Fall](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5230694) by [red_to_black](https://archiveofourown.org/users/red_to_black/pseuds/red_to_black). 



> Hi! Feedback appreciated this is a weird story!

The professor’s hands danced in the air. As the type of person who talks with their whole body, the class were captivated by her. She glided from desk to desk, from one side of the room to another, engaging each and every one of her students who in turn engaged with each and every one of her words.

“Coincidences and destiny,” she stated.  
“One of them completely random, one of them a manifestation of unavoidable fate.”  
“It’s your destiny,” She raised her hands in dramatic pose in front of her face. She smirked joyfully as she scanned the classroom.  
“To conclude,” she declared, taking the two hour lecture to a close, “random occurrences happen. Are they destiny? Probably not. But we will never know for sure.”

As if on cue a heavy clock tower bell sounded and the chairs of hundreds of students scraped along the floor all at once.

Liam leapt up, eager to get home. He made his way through the crowd to the door, his small frame effective at manoeuvring the large herd of people. He reached the door and entered the fast paced environment of the hallway, he stepped out and turned to his right towards the large glass doors of the college’s Musical Arts complex.

There was a thud on his side and he was on the floor within seconds, the fall cushioned by his backpack.

“What the fuck man?” He growled, seeing a tall figure standing over him.  
“Uh... sorry dude,” said the tall guy, reaching down to help Liam up. He swatted his hand away and got up himself, briefly catching eye contact with the boy. He had a smooth tan face, flayed curly blonde hair and deep almost dark blue eyes.  
“Whatever,” Liam huffed, turning for the doors again. He got about two steps before feeling a large hand on his shoulder, he turned with a scowl on his face.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t see you,” the taller guy apologised. Liam raised his brow.  
“Yeah. I get that a lot.” The guy laughed, his hand still resting on Liam’s shoulder.

“I’m Brett,” he said, his hand falling from its resting place and slipping into his jacket pocket. Liam’s face softened. “Liam,” he replied. The two held eye contact for a momemt before Liam glanced at the door again.

“I uh, I need to go,” he said, slowly moving away from Brett.  
“Aight, see you later Liam,” he smiled. Liam tried his best to smile back, which he’s sure went horribly wrong, before leaving the conversation and power walking to the door, his face tainted painfully red.

Liam plugged in his headphones and stuffed them in his ears, setting off at a steady pace towards his shared apartment. He knew Hayden and Mason would be waiting for him there, they had all decided to move in together when they each realised they were all going to the same college. Hayden was in a similar course to him but doing Vocal Arts. Mason was studying some sort of business degree on the other side of the large campus.

Today was Monday, games night, starting as soon as they were all home for the night. It was only a ten minute brisk walk to the apartment, but in the sharp cold of late winter the walk was more labouring. Liam’s hands were deep in his pockets as he pulled his layers close, breathing heavy as he made his way home.

After ten minutes he arrived outside a large 18th century converted townhouse. Walking in to the brightly lit entrance hall, there was a door each side of him, a set of stairs and an elevator in front of him and a large electric chandelier above. He went for the stairs, leaping up each step until he reached the third floor landing. He took a left, unlocked the door and stepped into the apartment, smiling as he was greeted by a comforting blast of heat.

“Hey Li,” Hayden called from the living room.  
“Hey bro,” Mason shouted from somewhere unseen. Liam entered and shut the door behind him. He pushed his shoes off, pulled off his bag and jacket and made his way through the open plan living kitchen, into a small corridor consisting of two doors on each side with a tall window at the end. He smiled at Hayden as he passed the couch and entered the first door to his right. His room. It was plainly decorated; white walls, a cream carpet floor and a white wash ceiling. At the far side of the room there was a large window overlooking his desk, in between his inviting queen bed and bean bag pile. To his right was a large sliding mirror closet, to his left a chest of drawers and a little floor space in between the foot of his bed and his guitar rack. He kept his room clean; stacked his CDs and records next to his record player, had his guitars sitting neatly in the rack, had his dirty laundry stuffed into a hamper in the closet.

He went straight for the bed, lunching himself on face first, landing in the soft embrace of his covers. He went over the days events in his head; breakfast, his first lecture, lunch, second lecture, Brett. Brett. He mulled the name over and pictured his face. He was a good looking guy, Liam had to admit. But he was tall, ridiculously tall. Liam didn’t really dislike tall, but it often reminded him too much of his dad. His dad had been tall, he was small himself due to his mother’s superior genes but he didn’t like people who reminded him of his dad. His dad was ugly though, inside and out. Liam had always wondered why his mother started a family with his dad, he was poor, ugly and stupid when she first met him. But she’d raised him up into a wealthy guy, but with wealth came the anger, and with the anger, the nasty stuff. 

Brett didn’t seem like the angry type, not that Liam even knew him, or wanted to, or was even going to waste time thinking about him and the sharp curve of his jaw, the soft blue glow of his eyes or the plump red of his lips. And now all Liam could think about was Brett, his face, his strong and agile figure, the large warm hand on his shoulder, the genuine concerned look as his eyes surrounded Liam and kept him firmly in place.

Liam let his thoughts play out, no point trying to hold them back, the pathetic images and ideas would seep through eventually. Brett was obviously straight, and Liam needed to stop getting attached to random strangers, he was far too much a whore for a few kind words. Tell him he’s smart and he’d be on his knees - metaphorically speaking. Literally, Liam didn’t have much experience, at anything besides the harsh reality of life, and guitars, and maybe dogs. 

He shuffled slightly, preparing to get up. The day was far from over and there were things that had to be done. He could hear the clang of dishes from the kitchen, no doubt Hayden had started dinner. She had a part time job as a chef in an upscale restaurant in the town centre, good conditions, pay and shifts. She’d really hit it off.

Mason however not so much. Mason has his talents but after his shifts working the bar at the local college dive he usually just collapsed and slept through the night. Liam’s job was the most rewarding, from his perspective, working in a small music shop right next to the campus. It wasn’t particularly busy but the owner had more family money than sense and wanted the store to stay open as more of a sentimental gesture than a profitable business. Liam was usually the only one in on his shifts, meaning he got to practise guitar and play music as loud and as often as he wanted - until a customer stumbled through the door. 

He got up and left his room, the soft lemon-like smell of sweet and sour curry luring him toward the kitchen. When he entered the kitchen-sitting area he saw Mason sprawled out on the couch and Hayden prancing from cupboard to cupboard in the kitchen.  
“Hey guys,” he greeted, entering the large open-plan room.  
“Hi!” Hayden yelled over the sound of sizzling from the wok.  
“Hey dude,” Mason murmured, his face stuffed into a large soft pillow.

He made his way to sit on the couch diagonal to Mason’s. Reading the labels on the numerous board games pilled up on the glass coffee table in the centre of the seating arrangements.

  
Scrabble was neatly placed at the top, no doubt Hayden’s doing. Scrabble was her game, she had literally never lost against him and Mason, sometimes it seemed as if she invented words on the spot, but after many arguments resulting in heated spell checks the matter had been settled and it had been concluded that Hayden was - simply put - smart.

 Monopoly was Mason’s style, sitting in a scabby box near the bottom of the pile and Dobble was Liam’s, his quick reactions and sharp eyes a winning trait for the game. He figured they’d pick a neutral option; cluedo, game of life or some other strategy orientated choice that could keep them busy for at least a couple hours. He looked to the large silver analog clock hanging above the trash can by the far side of the kitchen island. It was almost five, his stomach rumbled. At least dinner wouldn’t take too long.

He turned to glance out the large elegant windows lining the wall behind the TV. The TV was his favourite aspect of the living room. It was huge, curved and accompanied by a massive sound bar laid by its foot. The apartment was generally very modern, well decorated and more than comfortable to live in. The other residents of the building had well paying, sophisticated jobs and had initially been surprised to see three broke-looking college students move in. Liam hadn’t explained to them how they had been able to afford it, but they had grown used to their presence.  
He regularly stopped to chat with the older woman across the hall, Ms. Wong, she’d lost her husband a few years back and decided to return to work as a full time board member for some state-wide engineering company. Good for her, Liam had thought. Turn tragedy into something positive. There were no other young people in the building, students sponsored by their wealthy families generally lived closer to campus, Liam had been more careful when choosing his apartment, it was significantly cheaper but with more space and better facilities. The ten minute walk was just an added fitness benefit to him, not that it mattered when there was a fully fitted gym upstairs. 

“Pick a game!” Hayden yelled from across the room, over the crackling and popping of the various pots and pans in front of her.  
“Monpoloby!” Mason mumble yelled form the pillow.  
“I’m up for monopoly,” Liam yelled back.  
“Alright!” Hayden answered, turning back to her work. Monopoly with sweet and sour chicken, it was bound to be a good night.

Liam’s eyes ventured out to the street below and the old buildings surrounding their own. It was a bustling little place, always busy. The town centre featured a daily market which they visited once a week. The bargains there were too good to miss. Liam thought about his schedule for the week, he had a shift at the music store for most of tomorrow and a class later on. He liked work days, the relaxed atmosphere of the small retro looking music shop, nestled between a library and a dry cleaners with a coffee shop just across the street. It was a good opportunity to study, and an even better opportunity for him to develop better social skills. Although admittedly dealing with hipsters, wanna be rockstars and little girls could be difficult.

“It’s ready!” announced Hayden, coming round to lean against the closest side of the island.  
“Finally,” Liam grinned rolling off the couch and getting up to go to the kitchen. Mason gradually followed suit, eager to sleep but more eager to eat.  
“I present,” Hayden stated in a French accent, dramatically waving her hands over the heat drawer holding their dinners, “Sweet and sour chicken.” She pressed her hand against the drawer and it opened mechanically, revealing three plates of chicken, rice, sauce and assorted vegetables.  
“Nice,” Mason grinned, taking one of the plates and scurrying to the couches.  
“Don’t get sauce on my couches!” Hayden yelled after him.  
Liam took the next plate, thanking Hayden before walking back round the island towards the couches. By the time he sat down and sank into the comforting embrace of his couch Hayden was already there, sitting neatly on the edge of a hard leather sofa that she had insisted on having in the room.

They sat in silence for a moment, indulging in the soft texture and sharp taste of the homemade dish. It was Hayden who moved first, clapping her hands and bringing the others to attention. She moved to the coffee table, pulled away the boxes on to the floor and placed the weathered box of monopoly at the centre of the table, she looked up, seeing the others following her movements intently. She opened the box and placed the lid on the floor. Liam and Mason shuffled to kneel by the coffee table and began helping Hayden set up.  
“Okay,” she said.  
“Who wants to go first?”

 


	2. Do you like Madonna?

Liam woke up in a haze of pillows and bathed in the low light of the icy morning sun. He loved winter for this exact reason. The mornings were always crisp and easy to wake in. He didn’t suffer from the cold the way most people do, his natural warmth almost always assured he wakes up too hot, even when partially free from covers. He lay unmoving for a moment, contemplating the day to come; a long shift at the music store and an afternoon class. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and trotted along the carpet to the centre of the room. He started stretching, did a quick set push ups and sit-ups and then stretches again. Within ten minutes he was in the shower, enjoying the soothing steam of the hot water.

The day almost flew by, his lecture had a some industry insider as a guest speaker so was significantly more interesting than usual. Lunch was a simple sandwich that Liam enjoyed on his way home. After a quick nap and a small walk to work it was three PM and he sat in front of a glaring laptop screen on the stool behind the counter of the music store. Nobody had been in for at least half an hour and Liam was considering packing up early. He was meant to close up between five and six, provided there were no customers, but if it was especially quiet there was little point staying open.

The door bell rang and a tall figure stepped in, wrapped in a large beige coat and red hat. Liam glanced up and tried a smile, although staying quiet to allow the stranger to browse in peace. The stranger looked at the two shelves beside the door before heading for the three large boxes of vinyls. He knelt before them, he was huge, even knelt he looked to be almost as tall as Liam on his stool. He began rustling through the vinyls, prompting Liam’s attention.

“Need any help?” He asked, sliding round the counter. The stranger glanced back and Liam instantly recognised the face, Brett. Brett seemed to recognise him too.  
“Hi, Liam,” he said, standing quickly.   
“Hi,” Liam responded, looking to the vinyls as if to suggest a repeat of his question.  
“Uh yeah, I was looking for uh...” Brett smiled sheepishly and turned to him slightly, “a Madonna record.”  
Liam nodded in understanding and made his way to the boxes, moving around Brett in order to scan through the drawn on list of records pinned to the side of the box. His finger trailed down the list, following his eyes until he halted on the word “Madonna” scribbled in black marker.

“Madonna,” Liam read out, pulling the only Madonna record they had form a pile. He turned to Brett, smiled, and made his way back to the counter. Brett trailed behind, leaning against the wooden construction as he watched Liam mess around with the till.

“Cash or card?” He asked, glancing up at Brett.  
“Cash,” the taller boy answered.

”So,” said Brett, “do you like Madonna?”

  
“Alright, that’ll be nine fifty,” Liam read form the small dark screen. “And not really, I’m more into rock.” Brett nodded in a strange sort of accepting way and retrieved his wallet from the depths of his coat pocket and pulled out a ten from one of the folds, from what Liam could catch a glimpse of, Brett didn’t have much cash. He probably suffered the same way most kids at his college did, an extreme lack of money, only kept afloat by crap jobs or barely-able parents.  
“Actually, it’s... five,” Liam said, looking up at Brett from his stool.  
“Five?”  
“Five. We’ve needed rid of that for ages, nobody wants it, you can have it for five.”  
“Are you sure? Won’t you get in trouble?”  
“Dude, chill, take it for five,” Liam affirmed. Brett beamed at him, and exchanged the ten for a five, handing it over to Liam who slipped it in the register.  
“Thanks,” he grinned.  
“No problem.”  
Liam went back to the screen as Brett left the shop. Liam wasn’t great with social cues, but he was pretty certain that asking if he liked Madonna was very poor way of inquiring about his sexuality.

  
When the door closed, there was an audible sigh from Liam. He definitely thought Brett was good looking, and with a good taste in fashion too. Liam’s own style wasn’t so chic, featuring a grey hoodie, black skinny jeans and grey sneakers. He sometimes made an effort with clothes, but on Mondays he rarely tended to bother.

He thought about Brett for a minute more before the door bell rang again, he looked up, it was Brett, again. He looked confused, like he had no idea what was going on, Liam slowly began to mimic his face before he finally took a few steps towards the counter.  
“Can I?..”  
“I don’t like Madonna!” Brett all but gasped, placing his hand on his forehead. “I mean, I do, I just, I don’t want this vinyl!” He blurted.   
“Yeah no I get this a lot don’t worry,” Liam laughed lightly.  
Brett didn’t seem amused, he handed Liam the vinyl as he reached into the register to get Brett’s five bucks back.  
“Here,” he said as he passed it over. Brett looked thankful, but also mighty uncomfortable.  
“Dude, are you okay?” Liam asked.  
Brett stepped closer, only about a foot way from the counter, he shuffled awkwardly for a moment before a smile spread across his face.

“Can I tell you a funny but slightly, very pathetic story?” He asked. Liam’s face lit up with intrigue. “Yeah?”  
Brett laughed and his demeanour changed from that of an newly born khorse to that of “fuck it”.

“So I wanted to come in the music shop, to see you, I know weird, but anyways I freaked out and went for a Blondie-“ “Madonna,” Liam interjected, “vinyl, yes Madonna, anyways I don’t even like Blondie!-“ “Madonna.” “I don’t even have a record player!” Brett scratched the back of his head. Liam laughed just to ease the mood, before the words really sank in.  
“Wait what?”  
“I came in to ask you on a date,” Brett stated, his face remixed into absolute determination. “And I’m not leaving until you say yes.”  
“I...” Liam barely knew him, he’d literally just met him yesterday, although of course seeing him around previously. He couldn’t say yes, he didn’t know him well enough. But Brett was asking him on a date. Brett. The guy he’d been thinking about for the last day, non stop, like a new found deity.   
“Okay,” he answered.  
“Okay?”  
“Yeah, sure, I’ll give you my number and Snapchat’s,”  Liam said removing his phone from his pocket. Brett grinned at him again and Liam tried not to blush.  
They exchanged numbers and snapchats before Brett made to leave again.  
“You can stay if you want,” said Liam awkwardly, “it’s only an hour till closing and I don’t really see anyone else coming in.” Brett leaned down, arms folded on top of the counter, grinning again.  
“Then I guess I’m staying.”

  
They spoke for a while. Liam found it easy to talk to Brett, he carried the conversation while not making it about himself. Liam liked him, a lot, he was modest, into music although much more indie than Liam’s, he had good taste. Brett worked at a pharmacy not too far away, Liam was sure he’d see him there next time he was in.

“So where do you wanna go?” Brett asked him, leaning down, peering into his eyes. Liam bit his lip. He didn’t have much experience dating, a little but not much.  
“I have no idea,” he finally answered to Brett’s amused smirk.  
“I have a few,” he responded.  
“Fire away.”  
“Movies?”  
“No.”  
“Dinner?”  
“Nah.”  
“Laser shooting?”  
“Mmm.... No.”  
“Jam session?”  
“Maybe.”  
“Maybe?”  
“Maybe.”  
“Maybes good, I can work with maybe,” Brett grinned wildly. Liam wouldn’t mind a jam session, quite confident in his skills as a guitarist. The topic arose of what instruments they could play and how well. Brett wasn’t much of a guitarist, he could play piano, apparently very well. He also liked to play the drums, and had been in a band last year that ended after the lead guitarist had cheated on the singer. Liam told him he was a good guitarist and could play bass.

Brett eyed up the cased guitar leaning against the wall behind Liam. From it’s thickness it looked acoustic. He wanted to ask him to play, but he knew he might be crossing a line. Liam wasn’t a very open person - he’d noticed. He shuffled every few seconds and said “I don’t know” after making a statement, or “I guess” or “kinda” when talking about his positive qualities. He was cute, and Brett was undeniably attracted to the mini punk look, but he had also noticed the suspicious glances that Liam constantly gave him. He wanted to ask, but once again he knew that it might be too far too soon, although knowing it could be nothing at all.

As time passed and Liam got up to begin closing the shop, they split ways. Brett heading for the bus stop at the end of the street and Liam heading the other direction towards his apartment. Talking had been good. Liam wasn’t particularly fond of talking for long periods of time, he found it exhausting and difficult. But words were easier to speak around Brett. He was one of those easy people who didn’t push too much but also didn’t stay completely silent. His pace quickened, wanting to escape the cold. He plugged his ear phones in, careful not to drop his guitar. He’d need to practise tonight, although they hadn’t actually agreed on a date Liam assumed, he hoped, it would be soon.

 

After a relatively good night, Liam got into his bed. He let himself sink in to the softness of his matress as he exhaled deeply. He decided to let his mind go for a wander, but he knew exactly where it would take him, who’s face would arise to the top of his visual mind, who’s name would flash over his conscious like casino lights on the Vegas Strip, who’s,voice would soothe his ears like a blissful melody sent from heaven itself. His heart clenched and he knew he was far too invested far to early. There was a buzz from his phone, he knew he should ignore it and go to sleep, but he couldn’t. He sat up, quickly, and snatched his phone from the bedside cabinet. Brett’s name under a snapchat notification flashed on the screen. Liam’s interest was peaked by the news alert underneath it however. The small message read ‘Dangerous new virus outbreak in Jakarta turns humans into rabid cannibals’. Liam’s eyebrows quirked, that was something he’d have to look in to, but later he thought. 

He opened his phone and then the snapchat from Brett, a picture of half his face, he starred for a minute, straight into Brett’s inviting eyes before reading the caption. “Have u seen that outbreak thing in the news, scary huh?” Liam hummed to himself as he replied, a picture of half his face, similar to Brett’s, although he retook it more times than he’d like to admit when he was satisfied he began to type a response.

“Yeah haha, better hope it’s not the start of a zombie apocalypse.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback / plot ideas greatly appreciated!


	3. Deep Breath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback greatly appreciated! Please tell me things you like / dislike!

Liam awakes with a start. He can’t remember the dream he’d been having, but he feels as if he was interrupted. He hears a noise, like a clutter of bottle caps presumably from a bathroom outside. He gets up to investigate, pulling on a pair of shorts and grabbing his phone from the cabinet. He runs a hand through his unkempt hair and glances around his room. It’s relatively light out and noticeably warmer than yesterday, looking at his phone he sees that it’s almost eight, he has a few social media alerts, most noticeably Brett, and a couple news alerts. Remembering the disturbing message he got last night he looked at them, the first seemed to refer to what he’d read last night. ‘Indonesian Security Forces battle against infected, military chief says threat elimated, human rights groups raise concerns over military executing civillians’ Liam makes a mental note of investigating that further. He begins to pad over to his bedroom door, ready to discover the source of the ongoing noise but opens Brett’s snapchat, and stops in his tracks. It’s a picture of Brett topless in a bathroom mirror, the frame cutting off at his waste with no sign of clothing. Liam’s chest makes a weird movement, he gulps, instantly aroused, the text says ‘Morning’ with a couple of friendly emojis. Brett has serious abs, hardcut yet skin tight muscle that runs down his chest in an almost unrealistically perfect manor.  He ponders for a moment, the picture itself is hot, very, very hot, and Liam would call Brett a fuckboy if it hadn’t been for a less suggestive smiley face and sun emojis. Regardless, he rushes from his room straight for Hayden’s. He burst in only to find the pink palace empty. He backs out and makes for Hayden’s bathroom, the apparent source of the noise, and finds her rubbing some sort of blue cream on her arms. 

“HAYDEN!” He yells at her from behind, she screams and falls from her perch on the toilet seat. 

“LIAM! For fuck sake!” 

Liam burst out into a fit of laughter, stumbling over himself before remembering his purpose for being there and getting serious. “Get up I need your help.” She gives him an angered look so he adds “Please!” Hayden stands and places her bottle down and dries her hands. She moves near to Liam, who only now notices she is wearing nothing but a towel, and looks at the still open snapchat on his phone. 

“Oh,” is all she says for a moment, “oh very nice, nice... Is this why you were distracted all through dinner last night?” 

“Yeah,” he answers, his cheeks reddening. Hayden bites her lip, “you know you have to respond right? If he checks, it’s gonna look like you’ve opened it and not responded for however long you’ve been gaping at it,” she informs him. 

“Oh shit,” Liam quickly closes the snap, much to his dismay, and takes a picture of his face, carefully trying to avoid his red eye and ragged hair. He captions it ‘Morning’, just as Brett had, with a couple of innocent enough emojis. 

“Yeah that’ll do,” says Hayden from beside him. He sends it and lets out a long breath of air he hadn’t realised he’d been holding.

”So tell me... hmmmm,” says Hayden, “Everything, all the details, every bit, right now!” She squeals. Scrambling to pull Liam with her to sit cross legged on the floor, as if they were back in preschool. 

After almost twenty minutes was spent informing Hayden about Brett, Liam decided to get ready. His schedule for the day was pretty clear and while he’d much prefer to go back to bed and just sleep he knew he could make a more productive use of his time. He decided he’d have a leisure day, go to the shooting range, practice with his bow, go to the gym, maybe do some grocery shopping. He pondered over what to do as he stepped out of the shower, he’d been talking to Brett through snapchat pretty often, he was almost ashamed to admit that Brett was dangerously close to breaching his best friends list, considering the amount of people Liam regularly talked to was small and worryingly selective. 

When he was done towelling himself off he checked his phone and opened another few snapchats, replying to them all in due course, he thought for a moment before opening Brett’s. Brett was in a lecture, would it be selfish to talk to him and distract him? He was probably just being annoying anyways, Brett probably spoke to lots of people, Liam was most likely just one of multiple love interests he had on the go. He put down his phone and got dressed, pulling on a pair of jeans and a long sleeved top, before heading to the kitchen for breakfast. When he entered the spacious open plan area he turned on the news channel, just as a background noise to keep him company. He moved through to the kitchen and picked out a cereal, milk, a bowl and a spoon. He sat down on a stool by the island and glanced up at the TV. The volume was pretty low but he could easily hear what the reporter on the screen was talking about.

”An entire neighbourhood in Jakarta, the Elis Al Esleem slum, has been completely cordoned off by Indonesian security forces in an attempt to contain a vicious new virus being dubbed the ‘Zombie virus’ thought to be infecting people at record rates, authorities say they are doing everything they can to contain the outbreak of unknown source. Attempts to investigate the source of the outbreak and the affected areas have been blocked by government authorities as well as a United Nations peacekeeping force sent to oversee security in the area. Human rights groups are calling the quarantine a ‘complete and indiscrimste violation of human rights’ as soldiers have been seen firing on infected civilians on sight.” 

Liam’s head quirked to the side. A dangerous easy spread virus that changes people into rabid cannibals, He pondered. If it looks like a Zombie outbreak, if it’s been dubbed a Zombie outbreak, it’s a Zombie outbreak he thought to himself. He knew the news was probably over exaggerating, just as it had with the Ebola crisis, besides, if it was really that dangerous then someone would have firebombed the infected areas. Probably, from his perspective the world was too ready for a Zombie apocolypse, in all honesty it was probably the only type of apocalypses people were even semi-prepared for. He knew he was, he could hunt, survive in the wild, shoot and maintain a bow. Sometimes Liam wished there would just be an apocalypse, he could get used to being alone in the wild, free from social bonds and interaction.  

The news then went on to talk about a mass wave of “prepping” in the US and abroad, with gun sales surging significantly. Speaking of guns, Liam hadn’t been shooting in ages. He absolutely hated guns, in all senses besides the psychological benefit from firing one at a paper target. However his father had raised him to learn how to hunt and survive in the wild, although he had never been big on hunting, taking life didn’t really spark his interest the way it did his dads. His father had been a major hunter, he’d owned a cabin in the woods upstate simply to go hunting from, with various animal heads adorning the walls. Liam really hated that cabin, what he hated more was that when his father died it had been left specifically for him. He’d sold it straight away, even without his mother’s consent, but she hadn’t minded. He thought of his mother for a moment, she’d been living the high life since going back to work as a producer in Hollywood. They communicated every so often, texting every couple days and calling at least once a week. He had only just got back last week from visiting her over Christmas, a well needed break. 

He finished his breakfast, cleaned up and left the TV on as he went back to his room to finish getting ready. When he was dressed he went to his closet and pulled out a large silver chest. He opened the chest, removed a silver case and placed it on his bed. He then took out another case, this one much larger and placed it beside the first one. In the cases were his rifle and his cross bow, he took his long bow from the closet too. He had himself a mini arsenal. He absolutely loved archery, he was good at it, really good, so good in fact he almost competed nationally but his father had stopped him, calling archery a women’s sport, that Liam had to shoot, had to be good with guns. He thought about what to do before finally making a conclusive decision. 

“Fuck you dad,” he whispered under his breath, before picking up his cross bow case and his bow. He slipped on his sneakers and left the building, walking towards a busier street so he could hail a taxi. 

The drive to the range was about half an hour in moderate traffic. It was located on the outskirts of town, at the foot of the big hills that shadowed the valley the town was nestled in. He liked going to the range. They’d recently added an archery centre and had began promoting alternative methods of self defence. The owner had told him that their friend lost a niece in a school shooting a few months back and that he wanted to change the focus of weaponry away from killing and more towards sport. That didn’t bother Liam much, he preferred archery any day, even though it didn’t provide the same raw release as emptying a clip from an automatic weapon did. Liam knew it probably wasn’t a very healthy coping mechanism, but it was a rare event especially after the last time he went. He just pulled the trigger, started yelling and didn’t stop until the clip was empty. He turned and had saw a young girl looking up at him in a way that made him want to fall apart. 

_“Are you okay?”_ She had said to him, Liam had tried to smile and shake it off, saying he was just releasing pent up energy. When he looked to the girls mother the glassy untrusting look in her eyes told him he had crossed a line. Looking back, he noticed how close that mother’s finger was to the trigger, how if required she could shoot Liam in a second. It made him sick to think that they saw him as a threat, that they feared him. Liam only ever wanted to be nice but all he could ever achieve was fear, dislike or hatred. He took deep breath, leaving the memory behind, he wasn’t in the right place to let his anxiety get the better of him. 

The taxi stopped by the entrance, and Liam got out, paid the driver the fee along with a small tip for dodging the traffic and made his way in, keeping his wallet out to pay the entrance fee. He’d load up on some ammo while he was there, get himself a few cases of arrows and maybe a new sharpening tool so he could make his own. Afterall, if the news was right, it _was_ the beginning of the apocalypse. 

The archery centre was abondoned when he got there, unsurprisingly the gun range was overflowing with worried gun owners and concerned citizens who listened a little too carefully to the fear mongering in the news. The sound of bullets ricocheted across the entire complex, even with the sound doors shut so many guns firing so many rounds so quickly created a deathly racket. The archery centre was outdoors, it had three different target corridors, each with five different slots. It was still cold from the winter and the sun was just barely peaking over the hills, but it was still a nice day. 

He took a spot in the middle lane of the hardest corridor, it was decorated in red and yellow, a nice accompanying display in Liam’s opinion. The targets were small and almost forty meters away, with the choice of pushing them back to fifty. It was difficult even with the best of crossbows, never mind normal bows, but Liam had managed before many times. He took aim, breathing deeply to steady his arm, and let go. The arrow flew so fast his eyes couldn’t keep up. It hit the centre belt of the target with a small thud. Liam grinned pridefully, he almost wished there had been someone there to see it. 

His mind suddenly turned to Brett, what does Brett think of shooting he thought, of archery, of violence. He’d mentioned to Liam that his adopted mother was a Therevadan Buddhist, but was pro-self defence. Liam knew little of the religion, or ‘the way of life’ as Brett had called it, but he knew it promoted absolute pacifism. Brett explained to him that sometimes peace cannot be achieved without the threat of violence, and that Buddhism dictates a wise defence in the name of preventing annihilation is far superior to the idiocy of allowing oneself to be completely wiped out. It sounded like a pretty cool belief system to him. He’d been raised atheist, his dad came from a religious family but he’d always called it bullshit. His mother’s parents were scholars and pretty agnostic, Liam had woefully questioned them once and received and almost hour long lecture on why and how they cannot know for sure if anything is true, as while science can prove itself, it cannot disprove religion. 

Liam was almost completely different to everyone on his mother’s side, beside his height and blonde hair, he was irritable and anxious where as they were always calm, he was musical where as they were academics and scholars. His mother was pretty artistic, as a producer she had a hand in many of the creative aspects of films. She was making big money, but more importantly she was happier than she’d ever been, flourishing in the absence of his father. And come to think of it, flourishing in the absense of him. Liam tried to ignore those thoughts, the ones that declared he was unwanted, a burden, a nuisance. They always crept up on him, seeping into his conscious like black goo spreading death and sowing terror. He took another deep breath, as he seemed to be doing so often lately, and prepared to fire another arrow. He drew the string back, took aim and let go. It hit the second belt, just narrowly missing the first. He started chewing on his lip. His anxiety was getting to him, taking over, infecting his abilities. He decided to take a moment. He sat down on a bench and pulled out his phone. He still hadn’t opened the Snapchat from Brett. His lecture should definitely be over by now, and he knew that the only other thing Brett had on was a shift at his pharmacy. He opened the Snapchat, it was a picture of Brett in the lecture hall, surrounded by other uninterested students. The caption read ‘what are you doing tonight?’ Suddenly Liam felt like an idiot for not answering, it’d been almost two hours and he knew that must have made look like a utter dick, he’d experienced guys doing the same thing to him a couple times and he absolutely hated it. 

He took a picture of his face, avoiding the sign hanging above him that said ‘Archery zone’ and responded saying he was doing nothing. He answered a couple other Snapchats, one from Hayden inquiring about Brett, before Brett responded, very quick, Liam thought to himself. It was a picture of Brett, saying ‘Wrong answer’, Liam’s head quirked, confused he answered asking what he meant. Brett’s response came fast, ‘you’re going to dinner with me’. Liam’s heart almost stopped. He was both swept off his feet and disgusted. He’d told Brett he wasn’t so big on dinner dates, but at the same time he was attracted to Brett’s confidence. It had a sureness that seemed so stable and secure. Liam needed that. He answered back, agreeing and laughing. He put his phone away, he’d got the boost he needed, and hit the first belt for the next six arrows. He checked his phone again and agreed to Brett saying he’d swing by when Liam was at work. He bit his lip, knowing time was going to move unbelievably slow until he arrived. Liam was far too invested and he knew it, he’d only been talking to him for a couple days and he was almost head over heels. He couldn’t admit it out loud, he knew that everything could go wrong so fast, that this  could just be another mistake or opportunity for Liam to get hurt. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am British so gun ownership seems ridiculous to me, but I feel like it might be useful to give Liam the weaponry abilities now rather than pull them out them out the hat later :P


	4. The Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi

It was getting late. Liam stood, shaking slightly, looking himself up and down in the mirror. Brett was going to pick him up in the lobby so they could walk to the restaurant. He looked good, although it had been a combined effort from Hayden and Mason to dress him. He wore a casual outfit, nice chinos, a tight long sleeved shirt. He tried his best not to chew on his lip, Hayden had doused him in lip salve while Mason gave him a full on lecture on kissing other guys. Liam knew how, perfectly well, in his opinion but Mason’s superior experience would be amiss to ignore. 

Hayden rushed back in to the room. She was holding two handfuls of various types of makeup that Liam was pretty sure he didn’t need. 

“Now this, is going to perfect your look!” She grinned wildly.

”I think I’m alright Hayds,” said Liam as he backed away.

”Don’t be silly come here,” she lunged for him and Liam narrowly dodged out of the way, she stumbled for a moment but regained herself. 

“Liam I’m serious makeup will really help!” 

“So you think I’m ugly?” He said, catching her out. She paused, stuttered and looked defeated. 

“I mean... well... you don’t _need_ makeup, it-“

”Hayden,” Mason chastited as he entered the room, “he’s fine.” He turned to Liam, looked him up and down and said “you’re fine dude, honestly.”

Liam breathed out a sigh of relief, once his friends were done fanning over him like new born baby he left the room in order to get a glass of water, and some space. He checked his watch, it shouldn’t be long until Brett was supposed to arrive. The other two accompanied him to the kitchen, making casual guesses as to how the night would wind up. He wasn’t really listening, just catching glimpses of their girlish conversation. 

“Have you got a condom?” Hayden asked, worriedly. Liam reddened immediately, he hadn’t actually considered that. He was pretty certain that he didn’t wanna sleep over on the first date though. 

“I’m not sure I’ll need one,” he answered. Hayden chewed her lip for a moment, before Mason jumped in to help.

”He’s right,” Liam smiled at his friend for the support, who in turn grinned back mischievously, “he’s definitely on bottom.” Liam blushed deeply and turned away heading for the door. “Thanks guys, just thanks.” He heard giggles behind him and a few encouragements to have fun, “but safe fun!” and left the apartment. 

The first thing he noticed when he traipsed down the steps to the lobby was Brett leant casually against the wall.

”Y’know,” he said, “this is nice place for someone who works in a music shop,” he grinned, showing Liam his Snow White teeth. Liam felt something within him clench, a sharp tension that stole his breath. He tried to smile back, but he was sure it went horribly wrong. He didn't really understand his emotions around Brett, he'd known him for two days yet it felt like he'd been there his whole life. Maybe in some sense he had, a connection unspoken, unknown, unnoticed just recently set alight. 

“You look good,” Brett said as he neared. 

“Thanks, you uh two,” Liam replied, his eyes not quite able to meet Brett’s. He did look good, very good. He wore a pair of beige chinos, rolled at the bottom, a tucked in, very tight, very thin, red shirt, flat brown shoes that didn't seem appropriate for winter and a loose fitting black denim jacket. Damn he dresses well, Liam thought to himself. Brett's hair was messy but put up, deliberately, Liam presumed. Brett seemed so well put together, perfectly designed and maintained. 

"Are you ready to go?" Brett asked in a quiet, almost shy tone. He must have noticed Liam starring at him. Liam nodded in response and smiled at Brett as they left the lobby side by side. Liam could really notice a height difference now. Brett was at least six inches taller than him. It wasn't so bad as to look ridiculous, but from a far enough distance it would really look like a parent and child. Liam shook the thought from his mind, garnering Brett's attention.

"You good?" He asked, looking Liam up and down concerned. 

"Yeah... are you?" Liam answered, peering up at him. 

Brett grinned, "definitely," making Liam blush. "You blush a lot don't you?" Brett teased, earning an even greater deepening of the red staining Liam's cheeks. "Shut up," Liam tried to calm himself down, but he knew the redness would stick for ages too long. 

"It's cute!" Brett furthered, Liam grimaced, figuring Brett was testing his limits.

"It's childish," he pouted, desperately avoiding the taller boy's gaze. 

"Well then lets agree to disagree," said Brett, "but its definitely cute."

Liam shook off the comment and tried to change the subject, "So how far away is the restaurant?" He asked. Brett's face twisted as he thought, Liam saw him glance up at a street sign on a near approaching corner. "Maybe fifteen minutes," he answered. Liam nodded in response. He tried to think of a way to keep the talking going but no ideas were coming to the forefront of his thoughts and he didn't have time to dig around his messy mind. 

After a moment of silence it was Brett who spoke. "So whats California like?" He asked. 

Liam thought about his reply for a moment, one of the various pieces of advice Hayden had given him was to be positive, talk about nice things. "It's good,"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, its sunny, people are quite nice, ice creams good," he furthered. 

"The ice creams good? That's your description of you home state?" Brett teased. 

"Well... it is," Liam stuttered. "The ice cream is very good." Brett grinned down at him and Liam grinned back. He liked the playful tone Brett enacted, enjoyed the calm yet fun atmosphere around him. They spoke until the reached the restaurant, topics surrounding their home states dominating the discussion. 

It was small, Italian themed and very calm. It appeared to be more of an artistic lunch cafe, with multiple tables nestled between the bushes outside. Inside was a small strip of booths, some tables beside them and a wall-length bar. There was plant life everywhere, giving the restaurant a natural feel. When they entered a waitress rushed to where they stood by the door. 

"Hello," she greeted in a thick Italian accent, "welcome, please follow me," she led them to one of the booths, with a tall window overlooking the table. Liam liked the restaurant immediately, he'd never seen it before, although it was very small. He looked over the menu, thankful that the choices were in English as well as Italian. 

"Do you drink?" Brett asked, seemingly out of the blue. That wasn't a question Liam was ready for. 

"Uh... sometimes, not much though," he answered chewing on his lip.

"Do you wanna get a bottle of wine?" Brett asked. Liam thought about it for a moment, a couple glasses of wine were enough for him to get drunk, but looking at the size of Brett he was pretty confident they'd finish the bottle and be able to walk home. 

"Yeah, alright," he responded, flicking the page to see the wine selections. 

They decided on something befitting the theme, an Italian sparkling Rose that Liam couldn't begin to pronounce the name of. Brett explained to him that is was very tasty while also having a very low alcohol percentage. Liam was thankful for that, that Brett seemed to understand his reluctance without having to push. 

"So," Brett started, after the wine arrived and they'd taken a sip. "I never actually asked, what do you identify as?"

"Bisexual," Liam answered confidently. 

"Cool," said Brett smiling slightly, "I'm the same." 

They smiled at each other for a moment, just looking. 

"I've never dated a bisexual person before," said Liam.

"Oh really? Have you dated many people Liam?" Brett asked.

"Well... no," he stuttered for a moment, "But I watched a college humour video once that said they're terrible to date," Liam cursed himself immediately, he shouldn't have been negative. 

"Oh," said Brett plainly. "So you like college humour?" He asked, seemingly unfazed. 

"Yeah," Liam answered, unsure of the growing smile on Brett's face. 

"Alright, hows this for college humour; I'm getting A's on all my papers and my assignments are all going to be in on time." Liam giggled halfheartedly. He certainly couldn't accuse Brett of not trying. 

The food came soon after. Liam had gotten a pizza that now seemed far too large for him to eat on his own. Brett looked at him worriedly, over a small Carbonara. "That's a lot of pizza," he stated. Liam grinned. 

"I'm a lot of Liam," he answered, sawing in with a stake knife. Brett smiled and started his meal. They ate pretty quietly, talking slightly in between mouthfuls, but they mostly just caught eye contact every few seconds and held it until Liam looked away. He felt good around Brett, a new type of good that he couldn’t really put his finger on. 

"How's the pizza?" Brett asked after a while. The pizza was gorgeous, Liam wasn’t much of a foodie, but he was confident that it was the best pizza he’d ever had. 

"It's really good," he answered, grinning wildly and he raised another slice to his mouth, "hows yours?" he asked. 

"Its nice," Brett hummed, before slupping up some spaghetti. A bit hit him on the nose and Liam laughed lightly as Brett dabbed the sauce away. 

 Brett was almost done and Liam realised he'd have to hurry up. He started eating faster, much to Brett's amusement. However he was still a good three slices from done when Brett put his fork down on his empty plate. He grinned at Liam as he watched him eat. 

"Need some help with that?" 

Liam nodded desperately, swallowed, and said "Yes please."

"Feed it to me?" Brett suggested. Liam was unsure for a moment. He was sure it was meant to be a romantic gesture, but at the same time he was almost certain that it'd go terribly. He caved, cut a small slice and held it up to Brett's mouth. Brett took a bite, grinned with his mouth closed and began to chew. After he swallowed he took the slice from Liam. 

"Its good," he commented.

"Yeah," said Liam casually, pretending he wasn't freaking out. 

It was his turn to watch Brett eat. Brett lips were kinda thin, but really pronounced, and shockingly red. Liam wanted to touch them, part of him knew he could eventually. 

When they finished the waitress from earlier brought a dessert menu over as she cleared the table. Liam felt a little drunk, just the slighted bit tipsy, and the wine was almost done. He realised that he'd been nervously drinking more than he probably should. He was feeling good though, peaceful but excited and he didn't want the night to end. 

"What're you gonna get?" Brett pulled Liam out of his own head, he'd been staring at the menu for ages now and not taking it in. 

"Uh... I'm not sure, what are you gonna get?" He returned the question, giving himself more time to think. 

Brett bit his lip as he looked the menu over once more, "Ice cream," he smiled up, "I'm sure it won't be as good as California's though." Liam grinned appreciatively, Brett had been listening to him.

"What about you?" Brett asks.

"Uh... I'll have ice cream too, wait, can we uh-"

"Share?" 

Liam nods a little and blushes, Brett grins wildly and raises his hand for the waitress to come.


End file.
